


What Once Was Like...

by InesStarkDowney



Series: Growing Up Being Half Me, Half You [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies)
Genre: Brother Feels, Brotherhood, Brotherly Affection, Brotherly Bonding, Brotherly Love, Childhood, Gen, Gen or Pre-Slash, Kid Loki and Kid Thor (Marvel), Parent Frigga (Marvel), Platonic Soulmates, Pre-Canon, Protective Frigga (Marvel)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-27
Updated: 2018-05-27
Packaged: 2019-05-14 13:59:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14770925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InesStarkDowney/pseuds/InesStarkDowney
Summary: The sun shined brightly in Asgard's blue sky, making it a delightful day of summer, not too hot nor too cold, just the perfect temperature. Loki reads by his mother side and Thor plays with his friends. This is just about how much a mother can love both her children and how much brothers love each other.





	What Once Was Like...

**Author's Note:**

  * For [dragonlands](https://archiveofourown.org/users/dragonlands/gifts).



> I am gonna be honest, this was never supposed to see the light of day. But a dear friend of mine El wanted some Thor & Loki fics to read that were about them as brothers and not... anything else. So here you have, my love. I'll be sure to post more for you. 
> 
> NOTE: If you are a thorki shipper... this is not for you. Just saying. There is intimacy between Loki and Thor as brothers and that's it. 
> 
> I just hope you enjoy.

The sun shined brightly in Asgard's blue sky, making it a delightful day of summer, not too hot nor too cold, just the perfect temperature. So perfect that when Frigga was sitting in the garden, reading and watching over Thor and his friends playing nearby, Loki walked out into the garden, a big book in his hands. His dark hair fell over his eyes, as he happily walked over to the table where his mother sat at. Putting the big dark leather book on top of the table, Loki climbed the chair, sitting on his knees and opened the book, sticking his little pink tongue out as he manoeuvred the thick already yellow pages.

Frigga smiled as she drank her tea, but continued to read her book as if it was nothing. Of course, she observed her little boy very closely, relishing in the feeling of the sun and the sight in front of her. The book Loki had barely had any pictures at all and those that had were small pictures of the brain, explaining its parts. It still made her smile proudly knowing that her youngest son, of just four years old, could already read avidly and with so much passion.

Loki had always been a fast learner when it came to these matters. He quickly learnt to talk even though he tended to be quiet, but when he talked, all it came out were long, coherent sentences that left the surrounding people slightly off, but Frigga was always left with an endearing smile. And when he started to walk, Frigga took him to every corner of the palace, though the library was his favourite place. Frigga still remembered how those bright green eyes shined at the sight of all those shelves with books... And still to that day it happened.

Frigga was witnessing it once more. The pride and love she had for Loki could not be described, much like the pride and love she had for Thor could not be described as well. Both her boys were the sunshine of her days, and they would always be no matter what.

“Mother, did you know that hugging makes you live longer?”

Frigga looked up to her son, his green eyes staring right into her blue ones, and she smiled.

“I did not, my love. Where have you learnt that?”

“On this book I found. Healer Eira gave it to me the other day when brother went to the infirmary. It talks about how the brain works, its little quirks. It's... science.”

“Oh, that does sound rather interesting.”

“It does...”, Loki looked down at his book, his little brows furrowed down, as he clearly thought of something that bothered him. Frigga waited for the question that she knew was about to come. “Do you really believe that hugging can make us live longer?”

“Do you believe it, darling?”

“Yes...”

“Then why would I not believe it?”

The smile that grew on Loki's lips was enough to light up the whole world. It was still the smile of a small child, barely out of his toddler years, but with so much energy. Frigga knew that boy would have much to accomplish and would do so with distinguish. And if he got to smile like that more in the future, Frigga just hoped those accomplishments could arrive soon. She couldn't imagine a world where Loki didn't smile excitedly.

Loki quickly closed his book and jumped out of his chair, only to climb over to his Mother's lap and hug her, his face hiding on her neck where he could smell her perfume of roses that he adored so much. Since he could remember anything, this was the most distinguished smell to his senses and he never wanted to stop smelling it.

Frigga quickly encircled her son with her arms, bringing him even closer to her chest, a little voice in her head telling her to never let him go because he could not come back one day.

“I want you to live forever, mother...”

“Oh, my darling love... We cannot live forever.” Frigga kissed the top of Loki's head full of wild black hair and squeezed him even tighter against her. Even though Loki was intelligent, he was still rather naive and had dreams she knew he could never reach. But hopefully he would learn that at his own time, without anyone smashing them.

Loki freed himself from his mother's embrace and looked at her, once again furrowing down his brows.

“Not even us that are Gods?”

“We are not Gods... Do not listen to those foolish stories of the warriors at the palace. We are ordinary people, slightly different from the others at Midgard or Nidavellir or any of the other realms. We turned out to be more lucky with our lifespan, but that doesn't make us more than the rest, okay?”

Loki nodded, imprinting his mother's words in his mind as he always seemed to do. It was his mother after all. The person he loved most in this world and in the nine realms.

“But... You can always hug me a little more so we make sure I get to spend every minute I can here with you.”

Loki threw himself at his Mother once more and drowned in her arms, in her warmth and in her smell. He was in his little heaven right then and he promised himself in his head that no one would ever take it away from him.

Loki stayed like that for as long as he can remember. He remembered how comfortable the arms of his Mother were around him and how warm he was, with her heat and the sun shining down on them through the branches of the tree. Everything was at peace right then, until someone called out:

“Thor!”

Frigga looked up from her book to see her oldest son, sitting on the ground, his knee split open, bleeding, and his four closest friends all around him.

Loki looked over his shoulder and as soon as he saw his older brother on the ground and bleeding his little heart raced with fear. He quickly got up and followed his hurrying mother to Thor's side.

However, he didn't kneel by his side like their mother, and stood behind her worriedly looking over Thor.

Around him stood Sif, Volstagg, Fandral and Hogun. Both Volstagg and Fandral mocked and laughed at the tears in Thor's face, because he was the prince, one of the heirs to the throne, and he was crying because of some scrap in the knee.

Loki could see how the blood was pooling in Thor's cheeks due to embarrassment, so he stayed behind, even though he wished to hold Thor's hand while it hurt. He knew usually older brothers were the ones protecting the youngest, but Loki needed to protect Thor as well. The sight of his brother bleeding and crying was enough to drive tears to Loki's eyes, but he stayed put and quiet, in his place, and let his Mother take care of Thor like she always did.

Once Loki was old enough, he wished to heal Thor himself and stand by his side in the roughest of times. Loki felt that his duty as the younger brother was to take care of Thor forever, and stand by his side. After all... they were soulmates, as the old goddesses said. The red string of fate kept them united no matter what.

Later that evening, long after the sun went down, Loki sat in his bed, being changed into his pajamas by his mother, anxiously waiting for her to leave.

Since he had turned four and Thor six both slept in separate rooms. But nights like these, when Thor was sick or hurt, or simply because Loki missed sleeping by his brother's side, as soon as the lights went out, Loki scrambled out of bed and laid down next to Thor.

With his pajama on, teeth brushed and hair combed, Frigga opened the covers of the bed and made sure Loki lied comfortable and warm. Frigga smiled at her youngest son, brushing her thumb over his pink cheek.

“Goodnight, my love.”

“Goodnight, mother. I love you.”

“I love you too, sweetie.”

Frigga kissed Loki goodnight and closed the door behind her, planting herself next to Thor's with a small smile in her lips. If there was someone she knew by heart was Loki and Thor and how much they loved each other. Even though Thor was six years old and far more independent than Loki in some aspects, there was this part of him that clang to the unconditional love Loki had for him, to the point if Loki knocked on Thor's room late in the night, Thor would pull him into bed and sleep with his arms around his younger brother. So she waited to see it once more, because she would never get tired of seeing her babies like that, like the years don't pass by and they grow up.

Two minutes after his Mother left, Loki got out of bed as silently as he could, without making any noise, and opened the door that connected his room with Thor's. It was dark, as Thor had gone to bed slightly earlier after healer Mary and their Mother healed him. Loki stopped at the silence in the room. Hesitant to move, Loki wondered if Thor was fast asleep. Loki sighed, furrowing his brows as he tried not to cry.

Although, as soon as he breathed out, he heard:

“Loki? Is that you?”

“Y-Yes.”

The light on Thor's bedside table lit up, and Loki stared at Thor sitting up on the bed, with a slight smile. Loki couldn't help but smile as well, and run to the bed, which he climbed with the help of his brother.

As soon as Loki settled in bed next to Thor and the light turned off, the room was dark once more and Loki was facing Thor. He could feel his brother's breathing against his face, slowly growing more stable as the seconds went by. He had been up just enough for him to see Loki come to bed, even though he was exhausted. Loki bit his lower lip, trying to contain the words that wanted to come out, but he was talking without noticing it.

“Brother... Did you know that hugging makes you live longer?”

Loki waited for an answer. Maybe Thor wouldn't care about and would just shush him to sleep. Maybe Thor was already asleep. Either way... Loki asked and wondered about all the answers Thor could give him, Loki wondered about hugging his older brother, not only because he wanted him to live forever, but also because he wanted Thor to know it.

“I didn't know that. Did you learn it today?”

Loki's little heart sped up at Thor's answer and even in the dark Loki smiled the same childish smile he gave to his mother that same afternoon. There were only two people in this world that could make Loki smile like that, and they were the people Loki loved most.

“Yes, in a book healer Eira gave to me.”

“Oh, so it's a medical book”

“Well... Sort of. It can help you understand mind diseases and how the brain works.”

“And you already understand it all, brother?”

“Not all of it... but... some things.”

Thor chuckled and moved slightly in bed, getting closer to Loki. Loki smiled even more, because he knew Thor wasn't like the rest of the kids outside. Thor didn't laugh at him. Thor laughed out of happiness and because Loki knew so much. Thor laughed because of Loki. It was different and it felt different, it felt good.

“You are so smart, brother... I hope that once we are older and you are still interested in the healer’s work you can take care of me after I come home from battles and wars.”

Loki's smile could not get bigger, and his little heart could not burst out of anything but love that moment. Loki nodded in the dark, even if Thor couldn't see it.

“Yes, I want that, too, brother.”

“Well, I think you can start now and hug me. I want to live forever, you know. And I want you to live forever with me.”

Loki threw himself into Thor's arms much like he did that afternoon with his mother, and hid his face in Thor's chest, hugging him hard, his little hands closed tightly in fists on Thor's night shirt. No matter what his Mother said that day, Loki believed he could live forever with his brother, and if Loki believed that, why wouldn't it be true?

Frigga smiled as she heard her two little boys in bed. With brothers, especially in a Royal family, there was never any guarantee that they would get along and yet... Thor and Loki loved each other so much, despite their differences. They were still young, that was true. A lot could happen in the years to come, but... What could ruin such a brotherhood like that? Frigga believed her boys were meant to be together like that till their last day on this realm, and nothing could change her mind.


End file.
